What are this albums' strengths?
The main thing that I like about this album is that it invokes the feel of the undersea world so well. The band were asked to score a series of undersea documentaries and they came up with these eight instrumental tracks. The documentaries themselves are certainly worth watching and their music goes so well with the videos, but the music also stands up remarkable on their own. Even when you're not watching the videos you can imagine all these creatures floating around in their beautiful underwater environment. I also find it really amazing that Yo La Tengo recorded this music, they've proved themselves to be an incredibly diverse band with their sound ranging from noisy alternative rock to mellow ballads, to ambient music.
What are its weaknessess?
At 78 minutes the album can be very demanding to listen to. I do admit that my attention tends to wander at times throughout this, but there's plenty of variety to keep you hooked in most places. It's also a bit inaccessable compared to the band's regular albums, perhaps even coming across as self-indulgent. One of the things that make Yo La Tengo such a great band are great songs and confessional lyrics and this album is a big departure from that.
How does it compare to the artist's other work?
It's certainly a lot different than other Yo La Tengo albums. Yo La Tengo are one of the greatest American indie rock bands of the past 25 years and although they've had the odd ambient track on previous albums this is the first album I've heard from them that is completely instrumental ambient music. I think it's amazing that they were able to pull off such an album.
Favourite songs?
My favourite would probably be the opener 'Sea Urchins'. The hypnotic bass and percussion creates a nice easy and relaxing atmosphere and the tracks itself contains many twists and turns and features a nice variety of instruments. A great opening track and also goes really well with the accompanying video
What feelings did this album evoke?
The feeling of swimming with the fishies. As I mention before the album does a really great job of invoking the wonder of the undersea world and all the various wildlife that live under the sea. It's also a very relaxing album to listen to in general.
How does this album fit into your regular rotation?
It's probably not an album I'd listen to too often but I would give it a spin sometimes. I'd rather listen to their regular alt-rock albums to be completely honest. But if I'm in need of an ambient fix this will hit the spot.
How does this album represent the chosen theme?
Well it's a completely instrumental album so I guess it represent the chosen theme pretty damn well.
How does this album compare to other albums nominated for this theme?
The only other album nominated for this theme that I've heard is The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon The Thaw by Pelican since it was my nomination. The chosen album is a lot more ambient and relaxed compared to the epic post-metal of Pelican. The Yo La Tengo album however lacks the dynamic of the Pelican album which sometimes builds and build into huge walls of heavy guitars yet can also be beautiful and mellow in other parts.
Can you recommend similar albums to this?
I'm not really that familiar with instrumental ambient music, but one artist people could check out would be Natural Snow Buildings. They have a lot of albums but all of them are meant to be very good. I have their last album Waves Of The Random Sea and I'd definitely recommend it.
What does this album's artwork say about it? Is it well paired with the music?
The album artworks gives you a good idea of the theme of this album and itself has a nice soft feel to it. The colour scheme reminds you of the greens, blues and twinkling lights that are present in the undersea world. Overall a perfect match for the music on the album.
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